The present invention relates generally to the field of collapsible structural displays. Specifically, the invention relates to a promotional structure containing messages, graphics, or photographs that can be collapsed to a flattened form so as to enable distribution in a mailing envelope.
Commercial promotional materials take many forms. Traditional promotional literature and brochures serve the purpose of distributing a message to an audience. Printed materials such as these can be inexpensive to produce in bulk quantities and are additionally inexpensive to distribute relative to other promotional options because they may be sent in standard mailing envelopes.
On the other hand, though, a great number of printed promotional materials are ineffective in capturing the recipient's attention and helping to create awareness of the promoted product, organization, or event because the common use of paper materials makes it difficult to engage the recipient's interest. Even those materials that may be more effective in catching a person's attention are still in the form of a flat, printed form that can easily be lost in a pile of other mailings or papers. As a result, despite the general cost effectiveness of the medium, printed materials are not an effective solution to promotional needs.
On the other end of the spectrum, a variety of custom branded products such as water bottles, calendars, duffel bags, pens, mousepads, golf balls, t-shirts, picture frames, etc. are currently available and can be effective marketing tools. Depending on the message to be conveyed or the audience targeted, products such as these can grab the attention of the intended audience and thus provide awareness of the product, organization, or event.
Such promotional products also have drawbacks, though. Although they are more likely to be kept by the recipient and are thus more effective in creating awareness, because they are designed for a functional purpose first and a promotional purpose second, they are less effective in conveying information. Further, custom branded products are generally more expensive than promotional materials such as literature and brochures. Additionally, branded products are often irregularly-shaped, heavy, fragile, or otherwise burdensome so as to make bulk mailings more costly than the distribution of printed materials.
Related problems exist in the field of non-commercial mailings. Many individuals and families enjoy sending photographs, personalized greeting cards, and personalized gifts to keep in touch with friends and relatives. The personal nature of these kinds of materials makes them more memorable and better able to engage the recipient than commercial promotional material, but these mailings suffer from many of the same problems as commercial promotional materials. Much like promotional literature, greeting cards, newsletters, and photographs are still two-dimensional items that can easily be lost in a pile of mail or other papers. More substantial items such as picture frames and photo cubes are more likely to be retained and displayed, but like custom branded products these items can be bulky, fragile, and expensive.
Of course, there are some products that have been introduced in an attempt to address at least a portion of the problems detailed here such as pop-up cards and books and foldable picture frames and displays. One such example is embodied in U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,060 to Corbo et al. Corbo discloses a self-erecting photo display that can display a number of photographs, is inexpensive to produce, and can be flattened and inserted into a mailing envelope. The Corbo design thus provides a means for distributing photographs that can be displayed and kept without losing the economy or ease of shipping of printed materials.
The self-erecting photo display of the Corbo patent still does not fully address the problems with other promotional materials. First, the Corbo design discloses only a rectangular solid shape where other, more imaginative forms may be better able to create interest. Further, the self-erecting design of the photo display makes it easy to erect, but it also makes the display easy to flatten. As a result, although the design springs into a three-dimensional form, it would still be too easy to flatten the display to put aside just as any flat literature could be.
Accordingly, there still exists a need for a product that addresses the competing needs of price and effectiveness but also engages the recipient to more effectively convey the message or theme of the promotion and create a lasting interest in the product, organization, or event promoted.